Under the Open Sky

Chapter Ten

Amanda and Jenny sat on Amanda’s bed, a magazine open to an article about a new actor and the new movie they had seen the night before. They had already changed into their pajamas, both wearing tank tops and sleep pants.

“He’s alright, but he isn’t as cute as your brother and Cade,” Jenny finally announced.

“I can’t say I actually think about my brother that way,” Amanda’s nose crinkled at the thought.

“I would hope not,” Jenny stood and moved to look out the window onto the yard below. “It looks like they have Cade’s things loaded,” she noted.

Trent and Cade were leaving for college the next morning, though Amanda was trying not to think on it too much. That was why she had invited Jenny to stay the night.

“I don’t know how I’m going to stand having Trent gone,” Amanda announced miserably. “And I’ll miss Cade too,” she added.

“They’ll be back,” Jenny reminded her.

“I know,” Amanda sighed. “Me and Trent fight, more so lately than usual, but I’ve never been away from him for more than a week at a time.”

“I think it will be good for him to get away. Maybe he’ll finally be able to move on,” Jenny mused as she rejoined Amanda on the bed.

“And if he comes back engaged? Will you still be happy?” Amanda asked pointedly. Jenny never made more than passing comments about how cute Trent was but Amanda knew she had feelings for him.

“No, yes,” Jenny shrugged. “I’m too young for him now, I know that, but more than anything I want to see him happy.”

“Me too,” Amanda nodded. Her brother hadn’t been truly happy since Angie’s death. The sound of boots on the stairs prompted both girls to glance toward the door and hallway beyond.

“Let’s take them their things,” Amanda suggested as she jumped up and grabbed the boxes she and Jenny had put together. Jenny trailed Amanda across the hall where Amanda knocked and waited for her brother to give her permission to enter.

“What do you want, pest?” Trent was grinning as he opened the door.

“We have something for you two if you’ll be nice,” she returned as she entered the room and flopped down on her brother’s spare bed. Her parents had been convinced that Amanda would be another boy and had decorated Trent’s room accordingly; no one had bothered to redecorate after her mother died.

“So what do you have for us?” Trent crossed his arms and watched his sister with interest. Jenny, eyeing the room curiously, seated herself beside Amanda.

“Here you go,” Amanda stood to hand one small box to her brother and the other to Cade where he sat at her brother’s desk, his sock feet propped on top. “There’s stationary, envelopes, stamps, some pictures of home, cookies, though I’m sure those will be gone before you ever get there; just stuff like that,” Amanda informed them.

“Thanks, pest,” her brother was looking over the pictures and smiling.

“Thanks, Manny; I don’t exactly have anyone to write but thanks,” Cade looked rather amused.

“I was rather hoping you would write me back,” Amanda plopped her hands on her hips and surveyed him.

He looked slightly taken back and then nodded.

“If you write; I’ll write back.”

“Good,” Amanda seated herself back on the bed and glanced around at the open boxes that sat scattered through the room. Trent had all his clothing packed, she knew because she had sat on his bed and watched him pack it the day before, but he was still gathering personal items he wanted to take.

“What’s left?” Amanda queried as her brother grabbed a couple of photo frames and added them to an open box.

“Not much. I’m about ready to tape up the boxes and load them,” he admitted.

Amanda sighed and grabbed the pillow from the bed before stopping and frowning at it.

“Where did you get this pillow?”

“That’s mine,” Cade informed her.

“Oh, well I’m borrowing it,” Amanda stretched out on her belly and wrapped her arms around the pillow before laying her head on it. She watched her brother tape up a box and found herself fighting tears.

“I don’t want you two to leave; it makes me depressed just thinking about it,” Amanda’s words were slurred from her cheek being pressed against the pillow.

“You’re such a drama queen, Mandy,” Trent accused.

“I’m going to miss you,” Amanda countered.

“I’ll miss you too, pest,” Trent’s own voice sounded suspiciously blue. He taped two more boxes and then stacked them.

“Mind helping?” he shot at Cade.

“Nope,” Cade put his feet back on the floor and pulled his boots on. The two soon disappeared out the door, boxes balanced in their arms.

Taking Trent’s absence as an opportunity to move around the room, Jenny stood and started studying the remaining photos and various items he hadn’t packed.

“You look ready to cry,” Jenny noted.

“I feel ready to cry,” Amanda admitted.

“I’m sorry, Mandy, I know this is hard for you,” Jenny’s gaze was sympathetic.

“I don’t like being left behind,” Amanda offered on a sigh.

“Me either,” Jenny’s eyes misted.

“I’m sorry, Jenny, here I am griping when my brother will be back and your sister won’t,” Amanda offered sincerely.

“Both are hard, just in different ways,” Jenny forced a shrug and wiped impatiently at her eyes.

“Yours is worse,” Amanda countered.

“What we’re going to have a competition over it?” Jenny offered a genuine smile.

“No,” Amanda smiled back. “I’m so glad we became friends, Jenny; I don’t know how I would deal with this alone.”

“Me either,” Jenny returned as she made her way back to the bed and seated herself. “Maybe we’ll have some classes together.”

“I hope so,” Amanda responded. Due to the way their birthdays fell the two were in the same grade despite their age difference.

“You two still in here,” Trent teased as he reentered the room.

“Yes, I have to aggravate you while I can,” Amanda offered.

“At least you’re honest,” he collapsed onto his own bed.

“What time are you two leaving in the morning?” Jenny queried.

“We’re hoping no later than seven.”

“Can’t I stow away in your luggage?” Amanda joked.

“Then you would be missing Dad, Naomi, and your friends.

“I think I would miss them less,” she predicted. “Maybe,” she added on further reflection.

“You would be homesick before I even finished unpacking,” Trent predicted.

“Yeah, I guess I would,” she acknowledged.

“It’ll be me and you leaving in a couple of years,” Jenny reminded Amanda. Trent looked so startled at her words that Jenny and Amanda both started laughing.

“Shit, Jenny; did you have to say that?” Trent looked downright irritable.

“Sorry,” she offered unrepentantly.

“You two stay out of trouble, you hear me?” Trent ordered them gruffly.

“We’ll do our best,” Jenny offered sweetly.

“Don’t you get my sister in trouble,” Trent warned.

“Excuse me, you take that back and don’t talk to my friend that way!” Amanda protested.

“You two are dangerous together!” Trent persisted.

“We promise to try and stay out of trouble if you two promise to try and stay out of trouble,” Jenny, her eyes twinkling, proposed.

“Here’s the deal. One of you always has to be the voice of reason for one another and one of us will always be the voice of reason for one another,” Amanda offered. She watched her brother exchange a glance with a smiling Cade.

“Well? Take it or leave it?” Amanda waited for her brother to respond.

“I think you laid a nice trap for us, Trent,” Cade accused.

“Deal,” Trent finally muttered.

“I think you and I should room at college,” Jenny suggested to Amanda. Amanda lifted her head from the pillow to peer at her friend.

“That’s a good idea,” she agreed before she laid her head back down to find Cade watching her. Wishing she could read his mind, she held his gaze.

“I don’t know, Cade, what do you think? Deal or no deal, can we trust these two together?” Trent turned to his friend.

Cade shifted his gaze to Trent and smiled.

“I think they both like pushing your buttons is what I think.”

Jenny engaged Trent in a series of questions about his upcoming classes and Amanda closed her eyes as she let their voices roll over her. Too soon she would only hear her brother’s voice on the phone and holidays. Amanda became aware of Cade’s cologne clinging to his pillow and sniffed appreciatively. It was a spicy masculine scent and she had, without even realizing it, come to recognize it as Cade’s.

“You falling asleep over there, Pest?”

“No. Just relaxing and filing this memory away for after you two are gone,” she admitted.

“Well aren’t you sappy?” Trent shot at her.

Amanda opened one eye to glare at her brother. “Better than mean,” she offered.

Trent grinned a moment, his gaze affectionate as it rested on his sister. His expression turned serious, his brow furrowing.

“All teasing and joking aside, Amanda, I want you to be careful and I want you to really think things through before you leap. You’ll be…dating before long and…”

“Trent! What do you think I’m going to do? You think one night I’m going to go to town announce I’m bored and ask if anyone wants my virginity? Good grief; I’ve already told you that the idea of sleeping around for no good reason creeps me out!” Amanda was now glaring at her brother with both eyes.

“It’s not you I worry about so much,” Trent snapped in return. “I’m worried that some horny prick is going to start pressuring you girls to do things you don’t want to do!”

“Yes, because it’s so easy to get me to do something I don’t want to do!” Amanda was frowning at her brother.

“Guys can be persuasive.”

“And I can be stubborn.”

“And when you’re caught up in a moment…”

“Trent, I intend to be the one to decide when, if, where, I make that step. Not some prick as you put it. I want it to mean something, okay? So please stop acting like I’m some…whore; would you?” Amanda shot at her brother in frustration.

“Sorry, Mandy. I didn’t mean it that way. I’m just worried about you. You don’t know how guys think; I do.”

“No; really? Well we girls have opinions on it too. Did Angie sleep with you for kicks?” Amanda shot at her brother and watched his surprise gaze fly to Jenny.

“I knew you two were sleeping together; she told me,” Jenny let him know she wasn’t shocked. “And I can answer that one. She was on a cloud; it definitely meant something to her. Are you telling us it meant nothing to you?”

“No, it meant something to me,” Trent’s voice had gone soft.

“So why don’t you give me a list of guys to avoid and we’re good,” Amanda suggested.

“All of them,” her brother offered a smile.

“Great.” Amanda stood and turned to Jenny. “Jenny, I think I’m bored let’s go to town and see if we can find a couple of horny teenage boys.”

A pillow hit Amanda upside the head before she could make further comment.

“Damn, Manny; no wonder your brother worries about you,” Cade was shaking his head and smiling at her antics.

“If he wouldn’t treat me like an idiot I wouldn’t say such outrageous things,” Amanda launched the pillow back at her brother before laying back down.

“I’m not in the habit of sleeping around either, well at all actually just so you know I won’t corrupt your sister,” Jenny, her cheeks slightly pink, offered. “I’m not sure why you think I’m so wild.”

“I know you aren’t wild, Jenny, but you are very bold.”

“Manny isn’t? Maybe you should be worried about Jenny?” Cade teased.

“You’re right,” Trent nodded at his friend. “Amanda, I do not want to hear of you getting sweet little Jenny here into any trouble.”

“Yes, sir,” Amanda nodded.

“Good, now that that is all sorted out.” Trent nodded and offered his sister a smile; she smiled in return.

“I think what your brother was trying to say it to look out for heartbreakers like Cade. But you’re taking Cade with you so there’s one you don’t have to worry about us getting into trouble with,” Jenny offered a wicked smile.

Amanda watched Cade turn several shades of red and started laughing.

“Oh my God! Cade; I didn’t know you were even capable of blushing!” Amanda ribbed him.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen him blush either,” Trent admitted.

“I take back everything I ever said in their defense; you tell your father not to let those two out of the house together,” Cade muttered causing the others to laugh. “Damn.”

“That was pretty good,” Trent smiled at Jenny. Amanda watched her friend light up and felt her heart twist slightly. She didn’t hold much hope of her brother seeing past Jenny’s relationship to Angie.

Content just to be with her brother while she could, Amanda let the conversation move on without her.

“We really should try and get some sleep, we both have long drives ahead of us tomorrow,” Trent announced.

Amanda sighed and kept her eyes closed; she wasn’t ready for this.

“Come on, Mandy, we should go,” Jenny shook her foot.

“I don’t think I can walk,” Amanda argued.

“Come on,” Cade came to stand in front of her.

“What?” Amanda frowned up at him.

“Stand up,” he ordered. “On the bed,” he clarified when she placed her feet on the floor. He turned and offered her a piggy back ride; Amanda giggled.

“Are you that spoiled, Mandy, that you can’t even take about six or seven steps across the hallway?” Trent demanded of her as she accepted Cade’s offer.

“Why should I if I don’t have to?” she reasoned.

“Good night, Trent,” Jenny waved as she followed Amanda and Cade out of the room.

Cade dumped Amanda rather unceremoniously onto her bed, before turning to leave.

“Night, Manny.”

“Night, Cade,” she responded.

“Night, Jenny,” Cade nodded on his way out the door.

“G’night, Cade,” Jenny called after him and then closed the door before leaning against it to smile at Amanda. “You know, don’t you, that it drives your brother absolutely nuts when you two flirt.”

“What?” Amanda felt heat climb into her cheeks. Of course she had been flirting, but Cade?

“You two are always flirting or watching each other when you think no one is looking. It drives your brother positively batty.”

“Whatever,” Amanda climbed from the bed to turn back the covers.

“It’s the truth and you know it.”

“Like you don’t flirt with my brother,” Amanda shot back.

“Yes, but he doesn’t flirt back; Cade does.”

“I’m too young for Cade,” Amanda reminded her friend.

“Which is the only reason he hasn’t made a move. No, I take that back, that and the fact that your brother would kill him,” Jenny predicted as she climbed onto the bed and leaned against the headboard.

“So are you looking forward to the school year?” Amanda chose to change the subject.

“Like a trip to the dentist, but at least you and I can keep each other from going insane,” Jenny offered a smile.

“We’ll have to compare schedules,” Amanda suggested.

“I’ll pick you up every morning, you’re on my way anyway and that way we can ride together.”

“You don’t have to do that,” Amanda argued.

“I want to,” Jenny shrugged.

“In that case,” Amanda smiled at her friend. Amanda set her clock she wouldn’t miss her brother leaving and climbed back into the bed.

“I guess we should get some sleep huh?” Jenny mused as she slid further into the bed.

“I guess so,” Amanda agreed; she doubted that she would sleep a wink that night.